Pronounce Kamala

[HelenWheels]

apparently it is like Comma, as in a sentence and La

however we pronounce comma differently in UK
i guess it should be pronounced as they do in America rather than we would in UK?

In India it’s pronounced Kuh-mull-lah. Pretty evenly accented. Comes from Kamal (Kuh mull) meaning lotus. There’s no ‘aah’ sound except for the ‘lah’.

My favourite Dr Geoff Lindsey has a video on it :grin:

Same

Shamala Hamala

This is the best summary. But it seems too hard for non-Indians. Think it's achievable though.

Kamala is a very common Indian name. It is derived from the Hindi word Kamal which means lotus flower, which is also the national flower of India. The correct pronunciation is ka-MUH-lah.

For Kamala Harris, I say Komma-luh, stress on the first syllable.

However, I'm Asian (all be it British Asian,
born here in the UK) and know other Kamalas here in the UK. Some of them are Kam-AH-luh, stress on the second syllable which is longer (usually the ones also born here with RP accents, like me) and others (born in India, emigrated here) are KA-ma-la (sounds more like Pamela all very short and equal
length a as in apple sounds). It seems to be a name that's pronunciation can be Americanised or Anglicized and has strayed a bit from the Indian pronunciation.

A bit like the Italian names Giovanna and Gianna - most English people say Gee-oh-VAH-nuh and Gee-AH-nuh whereas for my Italian friends who have these names it's Jo-Vanna and Janna.

The only other American Kamala I know (second generation from Indian family, living in California) pronounces it exactly like how an American would say Camel with an a on the end -KA-muh-luh or to rhyme with how most Americans would say Pamela. They don't say, "oh look, a Commel (for Camel)" or "This my neighbour Pommela".

So, for me, Kamala Harris' choice of pronunication is an outlier, but it's how she says that and I respect that and pronounce it the way she prefers.

A often makes an O sound eg. what, want, wash, swap, wander, warrier etc.

Bengalis would pronounce it Komma-la
A is O with Bengalis. But she is not Bengali so mystifying.

Americans say comma to sound more like carma, so when they say kama it sounds more like karma, so Kamala sounds like Karmala. Thats how to say it.

Calmer-la

Karma-la

Well I would say "Camel-ah" but I don't have an accent which sticks random Rs in words making it Carmelar.

Not all UK people. 🙄

@Misthios that has been raised already.

Listen to how Kamala herself pronounces it. That is the correct pronunciation. Words & sounds evolve with migration.

Words evolve with migration because Westerners can't be bothered to pronounce names with centuries old meaning. It's up to Kamala ofc, but I won't let anyone mangle my name so it is easier for them. Like Sid for Siddarth or Jug for Jagdish to make it easier.

I was confused when I read the ‘comma-la’ thing because I didn’t realise that Americans pronounced ‘comma’ like ‘karma’. I was saying Comma-la (like bomber-la’ and though it sounded wrong.

That's incredibly rude. It's her name. She knows how she pronounces her own name. Everyone should try to pronounce people's names how they pronounce their names. I have a last name that can be pronounced two different ways and really appreciate those who ask and get it right.

Hope you're not speaking or worse whitesplaining on behalf of posters like me? Indian born and bred, and Kamala is as common as Mary or Steve here in the Uk, so hope I'm not being whitesplained at with the comment above.

I work with an English guy with English parents and English name who pronounces it differently from how you would expect (emphasis is on a different syllable but I’m struggling to come up with a good example without using his actual name). If I am talking to him or about him I use his pronunciation because who am I to tell him he is saying his own name wrong? If I am talking to or about anyone else with the same name I use the normal pronunciation.

I will pronounce Kamala Harris the way Kamala herself does because it’s her name and it’s not difficult.

I think the Indian heritage people on this thread will realise I am not being rude and perhaps identify with the pressure on anyone with a foreign name to Anglicise it. So many people have asked me if they can call me by my initial. No, you may not.
I cringe when I hear Preeti Patel refer to herself as "pretty" which means nothing when her name, properly pronounced means "deeply beloved".

Unless you are a Bengali indian - who would say “Kaw-mow-lah”. It is the Bengali word for oranges or orangeas well as lotus :)

So. Many. Rs. <rocks in corner>

We should be pronouncing it the way she does, whether that's correct or not. Lots of people have incorrectly pronounced Irish names and much as it annoys me I use their preferred pronunciation because that's the polite thing to do.

So you always pronounce words like a five year old learning to read with phonics for the first time? Do you say ram-en noodles instead of rar-men noodles, fa-ther instead of far-ther for father, ra-ther instead of rar-ther for rather? No- of course you don't- so many words in English are not pronounced exactly as they are written- what a silly argument.

Once someone corrects you on the pronunciatiation of their own name then that's how you pronounce it- not how you think it should be said from the spelling.